Obscure: Who Remembers TSA? Rarest Album?
Friday, April 16, 2010 at 12:01AM Here's one for the memory bank. Who remembers TSA from Poland? The band formed right at the dawn of the 80s and was actually an instrumental act. In short time, the band snagged a singer and started releasing albums and to date has released several studio works. I think their most famous work is Heavy Metal World (English version released in 1985). The band is active and is currently playing gigs, but the website doesn't have an English translation so I'm not confident posting what I could make out (and believe me, I couldn't understand much). Maybe some of our friends in Poland can fill us in as TSA is one of the biggest bands from that part of the world. If you haven't guessed, I think it's cool to post about bands from all ends of the earth.
Here's the band doing "Heavy Metal World" in 2005 (in English).
Writing about TSA sort of got me wondering: what is the most obscure glam or metal band out there that people just rave over? You always hear stories of people spending a couple hundred bucks on a rare vinyl or CD, but I've never been able to peg the most sought-after rarity. Just something to ponder.
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What is the Holy Grail of Heavy Metal?
Beyond the obvious Rock'n'Roll Memorabilia circuit, where a mint copy of The Beatles "Yesterday & Today" LP with the rare pasted-over "Butcher Cover" fetches $8000 or Bowie's "The Man Who Sold The World" LP with the original withdrawn "Drag Cover" just went for $1083.22 on Ebay, let's confine our subject to Heavy Metal.
First, our Fave...
Glam Metal...
What's more valuable?
An ultra-mega-platinum selling band whose albums can now be had today for $1.99 - $9.99 (i.e. G'n'R, Motley, Def Leppard, Ratt, etc.) or an obscure indy act you've never heard of who's albums hardly sold and are so rare you might get lucky to find one for anywhere from $100 to $700.00 (maybe more)?
Here's what's irresistible about the dark underworld (hahaha!!!) of indy collectable trading...
The music!..
It's often better than the major label hyped stuff we've all been brainwashed into thinking is the best thing ever.
While it is interesting to contemplate thoughtful subjects like Al's just recently posted dissertation debating whether one would choose to die rather than lose their hearing...
...consider this...
How much would you pay to own and hear music that's actually better than anything you have in your collection?
Like so good, you might as well just go make a bonfire out of it?
What would you pay for something that just laid waste to what you, up until this point, coveted to be your "favorite" and "best band ever"?
What if you could buy something that is far better than say, a band you love so much, you have a tattoo of their logo on your left bicep? Or better yet, your a*s?
What if that band sounded so amazing, you'd want to begin going through the painful process to have that tattoo removed to replace it with the logo of your new discovery, a band much better than the one you've emblazoned on your body?
A band that is so incredible, you wonder how the h*ll you've lived so far without hearing them?
A band that makes you look in the mirror and ask yourself why in h*ll you wasted all of those hours totaled up over a lifetime (and your precious vocal chords!) screaming at the top of your lungs, "Encore!" for a band that now pales by comparison to your new discovery?
Okay, all of that may be a little extreme, but you see what I'm gettin' at...
What price would you pay to own that CD?
I have learned about so many great bands from Al and all the true Glam Metal connoisseurs who comment on this great site. And on the journey to getting those CD's recommended by all of you Bringbackglammerz out there, I have discovered others that I've added to my wish list (because either I can't afford 'em or you just plain can't find 'em).
Many of them were limited pressings (500 to 1000 copies, circa '89 - '94), sold in the back of Kerrang! or Metal Edge magazines at the time, but also served as exposure for the bands to be picked up by a major, a la Motley Crue's "Too Fast For Love" album (originally self-produced on their own Lethur Records in a limited run of 900 copies -- hmmm... Maybe that's the Holy Grail, tho, not in my book, since you can hear it for a lot less than what you'd pay for a copy of that origninal Lethur Records release (if you could ever find one) -- $2.77 on Ebay for a mint original Electra CD release).
I've heard MP3's of quite a few ultra-rare "bands we've never heard of" and the stuff is absolutely stunning. It truly baffles the mind how these bands did not get signed to a major.
The couple of ultra-rare discs (i.e. Cream House, Jillson) I've managed to snag through the recommendations of collectors and dealers of Heavy Metal Rarities, are actually vastly superior to most of the popular bands we're so entranced with on this site (IMHO).
So, here's the conundrum. Rather than ponder, if given the choice, between losing your hearing vs. blindness or death, how about this?...
If your hearing is so precious to you because of your love of music and Glam Metal in particular, how much would you be willing to pay to own music better than anything you've ever heard or already have in your collection?
Now, for those true "Legit Metal" fans (you know, the closet real MetalHeads masquerading as MetalGlammerz when commenting on this site), your collecting opportunities are way more hardcore...
The New Wave Of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) that spawned such multiplatinum Metal acts as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest (tho Priest has had some Glam tendencies, i.e. the "Turbo" album) is the genre of Metal where the big bux come in...
Here are some rarities I discovered on the site heavymetaladdiction.com...
1) Demolition, "Hooker Hater"/"Axeman" 45 for $886.54
2) Ritual, "Widow" LP for $1246.19
Oh, and back in our territory, I also learned from this site that the first Krokus album, the aptly titled, "Krokus" from 1976 has never been released on CD and fetched $380 just a little over a year ago.
Though you can find a copy or two of Glam Metal Rarities in the $100 - $300 range on CD (i.e. Le Mans for up to $300), I'm reluctant to divulge many them because they're so rare and if I ever strike it rich, I want me to have 'em, not you, hahaha!!! -- okay, that's a little mean... how about, before you?).
Also, sometimes you can find the LP's of those same albums for a lot less if they also exist on CD, granted, in limited numbers. It can get a little crazy with stuff going for up to $500 - $700 especially for things like copies of original demos and such.
Then again there's lots of stuff out there that might not be that much, that's only on the semi-rare side and rivals if not surpasses, any of our biggies, let alone some of the more "collectable" CD's out there.
A perfect example is the superlative Wildside, "Under The Influence", which Al posted about not too long ago and we have all discussed here many times.
An original copy is getting rarer and rarer by the minute it's never been remastered and reissued, yet you can still find a near mint copy of that for $35.00 (maybe less) on Ebay.
As for the actual Glam Metal Holy Grail?
I have a pretty good idea of just what that might be, but it's all in the eye... er... um... ear of the beholder, I suppose. But I ain't tellin' ya what I think it is for reasons previously stated, hahaha!!!...
Which brings up another conundrum along the lines of the "Death or Hearing" debate.
Would I die rather than give up my knowledge of the Heavy Metal Holy Grail?
Or would I tell you if I actually got lucky enough to get an original copy of it?
Like the attache case in "Pulp Fiction" with the glowing object inside we never see, you'll most likely never know what it is.
Then again, if you are an avid collector you may actually believe you are already in possession of it.
And I sure would be curious to know what you think it is, hahaha!!!
p.s. Though not my cup of tea, many a Heavy Metal collector consider Celtic Frost's 1988 album, "Cold Lake" on CD to be the Holy Grail, if not, one of the Holy Grails, of Heavy Metal. Apparently, it's viewed to be CF's failed attempt at a more Hair Metal approach but it still sounds too damned dissonant to me, even though the band and their fans regard it as something they really don't want to remember ever happening (and judging by the inner sleeve band photo, I could see why, hahaha!!!). Killer album cover, though. A VG+ LP is out there right now for $250. And an original release "Like New" CD copy, if you could find it? You're guess is as good as mine. Hey, but it's got the most twisted "hard to listen to" cover of the Hoodoo Guru's "Mexican Radio" you've ever heard! One word of caution on all this stuff... Beware of the Bootleggers!
They ROKK!
I sure would like to know what they are singin'?
p.s. Peter, could you, or someone you know, translate? Also, my heart and prayers go out to the people of Poland during this time of mourning for their President and all of the other passengers who parished in the recent plane crash tragedy. And of course, my deepest condolences to all the victim's families and friends.
Hold onto that stuff! Thoze are momentos of your memories! Tell us how, when and where you got thoze, if you're still checkin' this comments section.
Wow! You were there!
Tell us, bro!
What was it like hittin' the strip? What was your best Crue memory back then (that you can tell us, hahaha!!!)? What was the first gig when you first saw 'em like? What other bands did you see? And what other stuff do you have? What other bands who didn't get signed did you think were great and do you have their stuff, too?
I once saw a Dokken 45 from 1979 on Ebay. It went for 80 bucks. Believe me, your Crue stuff is worth a lot more. My theory on the value of Motley's first stuff in my earlier post may be wrong. The fact that the stuff has different artwork and crude at that makes it all the cooler.
Checked your MySpace. Is there any of your stuff out there?
You're rockin', bro!
p.s. If you don't mind me askin', what is your Gold Record for? I should probably know this, and I bet I would if I had been so lucky to be on the scene out there. I wish I had moved there when I had the chance. I was out there on biz in '87 for a month (shootin' commercials) and I shoulda looked for a gig when I was there, dammit! You are so lucky you were a part of it all. Don't sell your memories if you can keep 'em, bro! Rock On!
Or overall ?
Thanks for condolences Metalboy!
Great to see you back on here.
Yeah, if you are into it, it would be cool to get the translation to this one, if you that works for you. It's such a great title, "Heavy Metal World"!
Again, Peter, our hearts go out to you and all of the people of Poland, and really the World, as it's everyone's loss. We must all always remember, we are all connected!